A fast-moving wildfire has tore through the coastal town of Porto Germeno west of Athens, destroying at least three homes and cutting off road access, as strong winds pushed the fire toward the neighboring settlement of Prosili and forced mass evacuations across the region.
Authorities issued emergency alerts ordering residents of Psatha to evacuate toward Alepochori and Megara, while the villages of Agia Paraskevi, Agios Nektarios and Kryo Pigadi were evacuated as a precaution.
he Coast Guard deployed three vessels to help evacuate residents, supplemented by private boats.
Kostas Tsigas, president of the Fire Service Officers' Union, told ERT News the fire's rapid growth was driven by abundant fuel and powerful winds.
"It was almost inevitable that this fire would gain this kind of intensity," he said, adding that aerial firefighting support remained uncertain and that protecting human life remained the top priority.
Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Evangelos Tournas visited Porto Germeno after a coordination meeting to receive updates from fire officials and the local mayor before returning to the national emergency response center.
Separately, a fire reignited in Xironomi, Boeotia, after winds shifted direction, encircling the coastal settlements of Agios Vasileios and Agios Nikolaos, where the Coast Guard evacuated 229 people by sea earlier in the day. Olive groves have been burned in the area.
A third fire in Aetos, near Karystos on Evia, remained without an active front as of 10 p.m., with 48 firefighters still deployed. Conditions were reported improving at a separate fire on Mount Poikilo, west of Athens.